she stopped by the molecular phytopathology and DNA extraction and visualization display and chatted with research technician Rob Linning. I come here every chance I get to learn about how to control the pests on my backyard fruit trees,” said Irene Herman of West Kelowna, who had stopped to speak with Rajiv Dosanjh, a horticulture technician with the Summerland Varieties Corporation.


SUSAN MCIVER


Brigitte Rozema, research technician, shows how she examines Spotted Wing Drosophila under the magnifier.


of the fields and numerous displays of current research activities with intriguing names such as ‘CSI Summerland—Identify Crop Killers, Insect Friends and Foes’ and ‘To Wash or Not to Wash—Germs on Lettuce.’ Visitors also had the opportunity to meet scientists, field staff and technicians such as Brigitte Rozema, who showed them what Spotted Wing Drosophila looks like under a magnifier. PARC also cooperates with


universities in the education of graduate students.


Siddhartha Biswas, a PhD student at UBC Vancouver, is studying how Baculoviruses develop in cell lines of the cabbage looper with the aim of using the viruses to control the economically important pest on cole crops. Penticton resident Jarmilla Viktorin was especially interested in speaking with Michael Bernardy, curator of the Canadian Plant Virus Collection. “I like to garden and sometimes my trees get some disease that I don’t know how to treat,” Viktorin said. Loren Campbell of Kelowna and Gerald Jansen of West Kelowna enjoyed checking out an antique sprayer used in the 1940s that was on display near the entrance to the main building. “I’m interested in what is going on in agriculture in our valley,” Campbell said.


Jansen said he’d raised his children on acreage with “every kind of fruit tree.”


Sandy Wiskel of Penticton got a glimpse into a whole new world when


12 British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Winter 2014-15


Kathy Kato, who farms 10 acres of apples and cherries in Naramata with her husband Roy, said, “We started farming in 1981 and are still learning things. This is a good place to come to find out what is happening.” Kato added, “I’ve never seen all those apple varieties before.” At the Ornamental Gardens, visitors could tour the historical superintendent’s house and the gardens, including the xeriscape garden, the largest water wise garden in Canada.


There was also a perennial plant sale with experts on hand to provide advice on plant selection and planting. Designed in 1916 by Alf Aveson and Joseph Smith, the gardens have proven to be popular with both local residents and tourists.


The gardens are used as a site to test new and unfamiliar ornamental plants in order to expand the range of horticulture material available in the Okanagan.


PARC at


a glance • One of 19 federal agriculture research centres in the country. • Current 12,036 square-metre


office-laboratory building completed in 1986. • 320 hectares with approximately 90 hectares irrigated.


Specialized facilities include: • Analytical laboratories for compositional analysis of fruits and vegetables.


• Molecular biology and virology laboratories.


• Wind tunnel for insect pheromone studies.


• Food sensory laboratory evaluating product flavour, aroma and appearance.


• Light, electron and laser scanning microscope facility. • Pilot plant for food processing. • Small-lot research winery. • Controlled environment chambers and greenhouses. Current areas of research include plant pathology, fruit breeding, entomology, wine grapes, food safety, crop protection, environment and resource management and minor use of pesticides.


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